Wednesday, August 6, 2008

With the Beijing Olympics starting on Friday, we caught up with a few players and staff who have participated in an Olympic Games to learn about their experience and their thoughts on the 2008 edition of the summer games.

First up are Peter and Landon. Both were a part of the 2000 U.S. Olympic team which played in Syndey. In those games, Peter played in all six matches, scoring three goals. Landon, who at 18 years old was the youngest player on the squad, came off the bench for Rapids foward Conor Casey against Kuwait to score the final goal in a 3-1 win, helping the team reach the quarterfinals. The 2000 Olympics was the best showing ever for the U.S. as the team made it all the way to the semifinals before losing 3-1 to Spain, with Pete scoring the lone U.S. goal. It should also be noted that besides Landon and Pete, two other former Galaxy players, Chris Albright and Danny Califf, scored goals during the tournament, making Josh Wolff the only non-Galaxy player to score. Of course, the U.S. squad was led by legendary University of Portland head coach Clive Charles, who passed away in 2003.

Peter...

Landon...

After those two, we tracked down 1992 Barcelona Olympic teammates and Galaxy coaches Ian Feuer and Cobi Jones. While Ian didn't get to see any playing time in Barcelona, as he was behind Brad Friedal in the pecking order, Cobi played in all three matches.

Ian...

Cobi...

Finally, we spoke to Klein. Although he never participated in an Olympic games, we just wanted to see what he's looking forward to seeing come Friday.Klein

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One of Major League Soccer's original clubs, the LA Galaxy play their home games at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. A two-time winner of both the MLS Cup (2002 and 2005) and Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (2001 and 2005), the Galaxy boast a strong and rich history in MLS and around the world. With a roster that features stars like David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Edson Buddle and more under the eye of general manager and head coach Bruce Arena, the Galaxy will look to return to the pinnacle of MLS in 2010.